THE Welsh language was used for the first time at the European Parliament last week.

Plaid MEP Jill Evans spoke in Welsh with translation in a seminar on language policy on Thursday.

Miss Evans believes that this historic step for the Welsh language can be a springboard for Welsh to be recognised as an official EU language.

She said: “I’m delighted to be the first MEP to speak the Welsh language with interpretation in the European Parliament.

“This was an historic day. We have campaigned long and hard for recognition of our languages in the parliament and this is another step forward. Currently Welsh enjoys a semi-official status after a long hard campaign. It is now my goal to use this historic day to push for Welsh to be a fully recognised EU language.”

The event, called Language diversity: A Challenge for Europe, is organised by the European Free Alliance Group in the European Parliament, of which Jill Evans MEP is President.